Keyboard holder

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a holder for keyboards of the type used in computer work, said holder having the form of a separate attachment comprising a carrier ( 8 ) which serves to support the keyboard and which is hingedly connected to a supporting part which is adapted to abut and rest against a base. The carrier ( 8 ) is turnable to permit adjustment of the keyboard at an angle relative to a horizontal plane, more specifically between on the one hand a first horizontal position and, on the other hand, a second raised position where an upper side of the keyboard is directed away from the user at an angle of at least 30° relative to the horizontal plane. The carrier ( 8 ) is hingedly connected to the supporting part adjacent to a rear longitudinal side edge and is, with a front longitudinal side edge raisable and, by means of a locking device, lockable in the raised position at an angle to the supporting part.

The present invention relates to a holder for keyboards of the type usedin computer work, said holder having the form of a separate attachmentwhich is placeable on a base and comprises a carrier, which serves tosupport the keyboard and which is hingedly connected to a supportingpart, which is adapted to abut and rest against the base, the carrierbeing turnable relative to the supporting part about a horizontal axisto permit adjustment of the keyboard at an angle relative to ahorizontal plane, and more specifically the carrier is adjustablebetween on the one hand a first, horizontal position where the keyboardis located horizontally or essentially horizontally to enable a user towork in a sitting position and, on the other hand, a second, raisedposition where an upper side of the keyboard is directed away from theuser at an angle of at least 30° relative to the horizontal plane,thereby enabling the user to work in a standing position with arms andhands directed downwards.

BACKGROUND ART

Many people sitting by a computer for long working periods suffer fromtension and pain in neck and shoulders resulting in chronic straininjuries. Today's word processors do not give the same opportunities ofso-called microbreaks as did the typewriters, for instance in the formof shifting sheets of paper or manually correcting the text. Longworking periods with precision work using a mouse have also been foundto cause strain in neck and shoulders and pain in the arm by which themouse is operated, a so-called mouse arm.

Various keyboard holders are known, which are arranged to permitadjustment of the keyboard at an angle relative to the horizontal plane.For instance, U.S. Pat No. 5,351,897 discloses a keyboard holder whichis adapted to be fixed to a desk top in a recessed position relativethereto and which has a flat panel and a mounting with a movable and afixed part. The movable part, on which the flat panel is mounted, ispivotable about a horizontal axis which permits adjustment of the panelat a negative angle such that the keyboard upper side with the keys isfacing away from or inclined downwards away from the user. The idea isthat the keyboard, thanks to the recessed positioning of the holderrelative to the desk top, should be located as close to the user's legsor knees as possible, and a slight negative angling of the keyboardresults in a neutral position of the hands without any angling of thewrist. A drawback of this keyboard holder is that the operator isobliged to work sitting in a relatively static working position with agreat, essentially right angle between the upper parts of the arms andthe forearms and with the forearms extended essentially horizontallywithout any real possibility of changing the position.

Other keyboard holders, such as those according to U.S. Pat. Nos.5,242,139 and 5,040,757, have a support for wrist and palm and arearranged to provide a slight angling of the keyboard from the user, butalso these keyboard holders do not offer any possibility of changing theworking position and relieving arms, shoulders and back.

The company Jargus at Karlsborg, Sweden, has for some time been sellinga holder for keyboards in the form of an attachment, the carrier for thekeyboard being raisable to a position where an upper side of thekeyboard is directed away from the user at an angle of at least 30°relative to the horizontal plane. However, the keyboard carrier of theJargus holder is hingedly connected to the supporting part via a hingewhich is turnable about a horizontal axis located essentially in thecentre of the keyboard carrier. This means that the keyboard carriermust be located at a relatively great distance from the base to be ableto make such a great angle as 30° or more in its raised state. This isdisadvantageous since it means that the holder will have a greatthickness or height also in its lowered, horizontal position, whichrenders a comfortable working position when sitting down difficult oreven impossible. If the holder is in fact placed on a level allowing acomfortable working position for the user's forearms, this will implythat the supporting part of the holder is placed on such a low levelthat this, and especially the base on which it stands, is on a levelwith the user's knees and thighs, and consequently he cannot placehimself sufficiently close to the holder and the keyboard. To be able toreach the keys furthest away on the keyboard, the user must thus stretchhimself forwards or alternatively raise the base and the keyboardholder, which will result in a considerably deteriorated workingposition for arms and shoulders.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention aims at obviating the above-mentioned problems anddrawbacks of prior art and providing a keyboard holder which makes itpossible for the operator to change working position quickly and easily,and making it possible for the operator to place himself in a workingposition that relieves back, neck, shoulders and arms. In particular,the invention aims at a keyboard holder whose thickness or height in itslowered state is minimal, but which allows raising of the keyboardcarrier to an angle of at least 30° without the rear portion of thecarrier abutting against the base, and which thus enables a comfortableworking position for the user when sitting down since he may easilyinsert his knees and legs under the holder and the base and all the samework with essentially horizontally extended forearms. At least theseobjects are achieved by a keyboard holder as set forth herein.

The invention thus is based on the knowledge that shifting between asitting and a standing position while at the same time the position ofthe arms is changed from essentially horizontally extended forearms todownwardly directed forearms, prevents the strain which may result in awork injury. A holder according to the invention achieves this by thekeyboard carrier being settable at an angle between a horizontalposition, for a sitting working position, and a raised position wherethe keyboard is angled such that its upper side is directed away fromthe operator, for a standing working position.

According to the invention, the holder is designed as an attachment foran existing desk and is placed on the desk top or some other part of thedesk, e.g. an extendible panel intended for the keyboard.

The holder can advantageously be equipped with a second carrier, whichis also settable at an angle and intended to support a trackball,control plate or some other cursor control device supplementing orreplacing a conventional mouse. The trackball or control plate does notrequire any movements of the arm as does the mouse, but small movementsof the fingers are enough to operate a cursor on the display. Thissecond carrier, which is not at all to be found on the Jargus holder, issuitably set at a different angle compared with the first carrier,thereby permitting as comfortable a working position as possible for theoperator. In an alternative embodiment, the carrier could be separatelyadjustable independently of the angle of the first carrier.

In a preferred embodiment, the carriers are plates made of some suitablematerial, preferably wood, plastic or aluminium. Instead of plates, itshould however be possible to design the carriers as frames or the like.Preferably the holder should be combined with a vertically adjustablearm carrying the display so as to make it possible to raise the displaywhen working in a standing position. It has been found that the carriershould be adjustable at an angle of at least 30° relative to thehorizontal plane to achieve a comfortable working position for the armswhen working in a standing position. For tall people, greater angles areas a rule necessary, preferably 40° and most preferred 50° or more. Thisresults in a comfortable and natural position of the arms in a standingworking position with a keyboard holder in the form of an attachmentplaced on, for instance, a desk top or some other type of keyboardholder at a corresponding level. In the preferred embodiment shown inthe drawings, the holder can be adjusted at a maximum angle of about60°. However, the invention is not limited to this, but also greaterangles are possible.

In the described, preferred embodiment of the invention, the keyboardholder is provided with a supporting strip along its front edge. Thismakes it possible for the user when standing to shift between looselyhanging arms and a supporting position in which the hands rest againstthe supporting strip and relieve arms and shoulders. Also when sitting,the user's hands may rest against the supporting strip.

The invention is not limited to be applied merely to keyboards of flatshape, but may also with a suitable design be used for keyboard typeswhich are angled and which together with the desk top form anequilateral triangle seen from the operator's side, i.e. an inverted V,where the keys are arranged on the two inclined upper surfaces.

In the preferred embodiment, the locking device for locking the carrierat an angle to the horizontal plane has the form of a yoke which mayengage in one of a plurality of recesses in a supporting part abuttingagainst the base. This locking device could, however, be designed inmany different ways, for instance by regulatable screw joints betweensupporting part and carrier, which would result in infinitely variableadjustment of the carrier.

FURTHER ELUCIDATION OF PRIOR ART

Vertically adjustable desks are already available on the market, whichallow work to be carried out standing, the desk top being in a raisedposition, but the operator still has the same working position for thearms as in a sitting working position, i.e. the upper parts of the armsand the forearms being positioned at a great angle relative to eachother and the forearms being extended essentially horizontally forwards.Such desks certainly make it possible to shift the working positionbetween a sitting and a standing position but otherwise cause the sameproblems with strain injuries as described above since the upper part ofthe body still has the same working position as when working in asitting position. Vertically adjustable desks are also comparativelyexpensive to buy and, owing to their size, difficult to fit into anexisting working place.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS

In the drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view which illustrates a person engaged inkeyboard work in a sitting position,

FIG. 2 is a side view according to FIG. 1, but here the person iscarrying out the work in a standing position with the keyboard angledupwards in accordance with the invention,

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a keyboardholder according to the invention,

FIG. 4 shows a keyboard holder according to FIG. 3, on which a keyboardand a trackball are mounted,

FIG. 5 is side view of a keyboard holder, which illustrates the carrierin different angular setting positions, and

FIG. 6 is a side view according to FIG. 5, the carrier being in thelowered, essentially horizontal position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Now follows a description of a preferred embodiment of a keyboard holderaccording to the invention, which is designed as a separate attachmentwhich can be placed on, for instance, a conventional desk. FIG. 1illustrates a person who in a sitting position is engaged in keyboardwork by a computer 1. A keyboard is designated 2 and is in conventionalfashion placed horizontally on a desk top 3. In such a working positionthe user's arms 4 will be considerably angled at an angle of or close to90° between the upper parts of the arms and the forearms which areessentially horizontally extended forwards.

FIG. 2 shows the same person occupied with keyboard work in a standingposition. In this case, the keyboard 2 has been arranged in a raisedposition by means of an inventive keyboard holder generally designated5. More specifically, the keyboard is angled such that the keys aredirected away from the user, which makes it possible to work in astanding position with the arms directed downwards and no or just asmall angle between the upper parts of the arms and the forearms. Inaddition to the positive effect achieved by now and then switching theworking position between sitting and standing, such a working positionwith “hanging” arms results in a considerable relief of, above all,arms, shoulders, back and neck. To obtain an ergonomically correctstanding working position, the display 1 should be verticallyadjustable, for instance by means of an articulated bracket 6.

Reference is now made to FIGS. 3 and 4, which show in more detail thedesign of the preferred keyboard holder in a raised position, FIG. 3showing the holder without keyboard, while FIG. 4 shows the holder withthe keyboard mounted and with a mounted so-called trackball 7 forcontrolling a cursor on the display. The keyboard holder comprises anelongate carrier 8 and a supporting part made up of two lateral members9 and a rod 10 interconnecting the same. The carrier 8 and the lateralmembers 9 are hingedly interconnected via a hinge 19 at the rearlongitudinal side edge of the carrier in such a manner that the carriercan be raised, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, while the lateral members 9abut and rest against the base.

The carrier 8 is in turn made up of a panel 11, two stiffening andreinforcing edge elements 12 and a front supporting strip 13. Foradjustment of the carrier 8 in different angular positions relative tothe base and the lateral members 9, a yoke-shaped locking element or alocking yoke 14 is arranged on the back of the carrier in such a mannerthat each end of the locking yoke is rotatably fixed in a hole in therespective edge strip 12 while a lower long side portion of the yoke isarranged to rest in one of a plurality of recesses 15 in the lateralmembers 9.

A second carrier or cursor control carrier is designated 16 and is, asis evident from FIG. 5, hingedly connected to the carrier 8 at its upperend via a thickened portion 17 which is insertable into a groove in thesupporting strip 13. The cursor control carrier 16 has a lengthexceeding the width of the carrier 8 and will consequently rest againstthe base at its lower edge and, thus, takes a less steep inclinationthan the panel 11 of the carrier. The purpose of this is to achieve acomfortable position of the hands and to make a cursor control in theform of a trackball 7, as shown in FIG. 4, function satisfactorily andwith no risk of the ball falling out. To hold the keyboard 2 and thetrackball 7 in the raised position of the carrier, Velcro strips arearranged on their back and on the upper surface of the panel and thecursor control carrier, respectively.

FIG. 5 shows schematically different setting positions of the carrier 8in relation to the lateral members 9. By arranging the locking yoke inone of the three first recesses 15, seen from the right in FIG. 5, thecarrier will take the respective schematically illustrated positions.When the locking yoke is arranged in the recess located furthest to theleft in the Figure, the keyboard holder will be completely folded to theposition shown in FIG. 6, the carrier being essentially in parallel withand in engagement with the base or at a minimum distance therefrom. Inthis position the keyboard can be used in conventional manner for workin a sitting position. The forwards rounded supporting strip 13 servesas a support for hands and wrists both in the raised and in the foldedposition. A recess 18 in the underside of the supporting strip 13permits complete lowering of the carrier 8 against the base by the longside portion of the locking yoke 14 and the rod 10 being located in therecess in the lowered position.

What is claimed is:
 1. A holder for a computer keyboard, the holdercomprising: a supporting part that is adapted to non-fixedly rest on abase; a first carrier that is adapted to support a computer keyboard,said first carrier having one end hingedly connected to said supportingpart about a substantially horizontal axis so that said first carrier ismovable between a first position where said first carrier issubstantially coplanar with said supporting part and a second positionwhere said first carrier is at an angle of at least 30° from the planeof said supporting part; an arm support strip on the end of said firstcarrier opposite to the end of said first carrier hingedly connected tosaid supporting part, said arm support strip having a support surfacethat is elevated relative to said first carrier for supporting hands ofa user; and a locking device that selectively holds said first carrierat the second position.
 2. The holder of claim 1, wherein saidsupporting part includes plural recesses and said locking devicecomprises a generally U-shaped yoke having arms rotatably attached tosides of said first carrier and a portion that is receivable by one ofsaid recesses of said supporting part so as to define an angle of saidfirst carrier relative to the plane of said supporting part. 3.Theholder of claim 1, further comprising a second carrier having a lengthgreater than the width of said first carrier and makes an angle with theplane of said supporting part less than said first carrier when saidfirst carrier is not in said first position.
 4. A holder for a computerkeyboard, the holder comprising: a supporting part that is adapted tonon-fixedly rest on a base; a first carrier that is adapted to support acomputer keyboard, said first carrier being hingedly connected to saidsupporting part about a substantially horizontal axis so that said firstcarrier is movable between a first position where said first carrier issubstantially coplanar with said supporting part and a second positionwhere said first carrier is at an angle of at least 30° from the planeof said supporting part; a second carrier having a length greater thanthe width of said first carrier and makes an angle with the plane ofsaid supporting part less than said first carrier when said firstcarrier is not in said first position; and a locking device that holdssaid first carrier at the second position.
 5. The holder of claim 4,further comprising an arm support strip on one edge of said firstcarrier, said arm support strip having a support surface that iselevated relative to said first carrier for supporting hands of a user.6. The holder of claim 4, wherein said supporting part includes pluralrecesses and said locking device comprises a generally U-shaped yokehaving arms rotatably attached to sides of said first carrier and aportion that is receivable by one of said recesses of said supportingpart so as to define an angle of said first carrier relative to theplane of said supporting part.
 7. The holder of claim 5, wherein saidsecond carrier has an edge that extends beyond an edge of said firstcarrier opposite said arm support strip.
 8. The holder of claim 7,wherein said second carrier is hingedly connected to said first carrieradjacent to said arm support strip of said first carrier.